There’s no doubt that 2022 has been rocky for Bitcoin (BTC). Given the present geopolitical climate, interest rate hikes, growing inflation and rising energy prices, an extra bit of volatility can be expected.
In that regard, it’s interesting that Bitcoin’s price has hovered between $38,000 and $45,000 for the past month. It’s a relatively modest range given Bitcoin’s history of volatility. Some believe this could be the beginning of a much-needed stabilisation period for BTC. Others speculate about a long-awaited resurgence back to $68,000 and beyond. The 5.91% uptrend over the past week certainly lends to optimism.
It’s only reasonable for investors to be curious about how high Bitcoin can go or how low it could fall. If you’re interested too, then strap in, as we’ve compiled price predictions by ten leading analysts for the value of Bitcoin at the end of 2022.
Ten Predictions: From Bearish to Bullish
$10,000 | Barry Bannister, Chief Equity Analyst
Point of View: Chief Equity Analyst & Managing Director at Stifel Nicolaus & Co. With 33 years of experience.
Barry Bannister points to three macro factors that could contribute to such a plunge. Bannister identified the first macro factor as the global money supply and its link to Bitcoin’s price. He cited that since the S&P 500 moved into the U.S. dollar as its power base, any supply/demand situation could immensely affect a speculative asset like BTC. The second macro factor would be the Federal Reserve tightening, which would likely result in a surge in the United States treasury yield. The overflow could slow or halt Bitcoin’s growth. The final macro factor proposed by Bannister is the impact of the equity risk premium of the S&P 500 due to the Fed tightening, which would generally be favourable to Bitcoin.
$20,000 | Gareth Soloway, Chief Market Strategist
Point of View: President, Chief Market Strategist, and CFO of InTheMoneyStocks and VerifiedInvestingCrypto. Twenty years of experience as a professional trader.
In an interview with Kitco News, Gareth Soloway explained that a drop down to $20,000 at the minimum is inevitable. According to him, the Federal Reserve activity has created a bubble that needs to be burst. Therefore, while he’s bullish for Bitcoin and crypto, he explains that the bright future for the cryptocurrency sector will only be realised once the market experiences a washout.
“Just looking at the metrics, the performance of Bitcoin I don’t necessarily know if it’s $19,000 or $17,000 or somewhere in there, but I do think it will at least pierce $20,000.”
$30,000 | Paul Jackson, Head of Asset Allocation Research
Point of View: Global Head of Asset Allocation Research at Invesco. Before Invesco, he held high positions at Société Générale and Morgan Stanley.
Paul Jackson pointed out the increased volatility of Bitcoin as of late and comments that the Bitcoin mania is reminiscent of stockbroker behaviour right before the 1929 crash.
“The template also suggests that bubbles typically deflate for a further two years. Hence, we think it is not too much of a stretch to imagine Bitcoin falling below $30,000 this year (with the health warning that we have got this wrong before and that it seems to be going through a series of bubbles),” Jackson said. He has also cited the loss of momentum in Bitcoin’s mass marketing and reduced interest from investors.
$100,000 | Hong Fang, Chief Executive Officer
Point of View: CEO and Chief Operating Officer of OKCoin. Formerly Head of Investment & Strategy at GiantNetwork, and before that, worked at Goldman Sachs for eight years.
Hong Fang is reasonably sure that Bitcoin’s price could surge past $100K. However, she notes that certain elements may influence the short-term possibility of that goal. “Mid to long-term, I still think getting to $100,000 – or even higher price – shouldn’t be a problem. The timing can be a bit elusive because we are at the mercy of market dynamics.”
The fact BTC’s network has “no protocol risks” is one of the reasons behind her bullish stance. She states as long as BTC’s fundamentals stay in place (i.e. security, immutability and transactional utility), the value will increase.
$100,000 | Bloomberg Crypto Outlook by various Analysts
Point of View: Mike McGlone (Senior Commodity Strategist), Andrew Silverman (Tax Analyst) and Nathan Dean (Senior Policy Analyst) – who each have 20-30 years of experience.
According to the Bloomberg Intelligence: Crypto Outlook report, Bitcoin may see a price spike thanks to moving demand and supply statistics. Within the report, they touch upon Bitcoin’s limited supply, rising adoption, and a path of least resistance opening up, all of which lend credence to the possibility of a new $100,000 threshold in the coming year.
Mike McGlone tweeted the following in a separate instance, vouching for the $100k target with another potential reasoning: deflation swapping inflation in 2022.
$100,000 | Frank Holmes, Chief Executive Officer
Point of View: CEO and Chief Investment Officer of U.S. Global Investors. Executive Chairman of HIVE Blockchain Technologies. Over 40 years of experience.
Frank Holmes is confident that Bitcoin will reach $100,000 in 2022, with millennials being the driving force. He explains that Bitcoin has the potential to surpass even gold in 2022, despite very optimistic projections for the more traditional asset class.
According to Holmes, Bitcoin’s ability to outperform all other asset classes in 2021, along with millennial participation, is why Bitcoin will become the world’s ultimate store of value.
$100,000 | Antoni Trenchev, Co-Founder and Managing Partner
Point of View: Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Nexo. Formerly Chief Innovations Officer of Credissimo, a European Fintech company.
While speaking with CNBC, Antoni Trenchev discussed his bullish attitude towards Bitcoin, explaining that it consistently outperforms whenever investors write it off, citing the 1000% rally in 2020 and the 63% rally in 2021.
He asserts that Bitcoin will reach $100K this year, possibly by its mid-point, thanks to institutional adoption, macroeconomic realities, and cheap money.
$150,000 | Ian Balina, Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Point of View: Founder and CEO of TokenMetrics, General Partner at 100X Advisors, and former Analytics Evangelist at IBM.
Ian Balina predicts that Bitcoin’s value may rise to $100,000-$150,000, but the timeline is unclear. He explains that the introduction of new cryptocurrencies and growing hype around the metaverse will continue to drive demand for crypto.
So while Bitcoin is currently in a bearish sentiment cycle, it’s only a matter of time before Bitcoin will bounce back.
$150,000 | Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, Cross Asset Research Analyst
Point of View: Cross Asset Research Analyst & Managing Director at J.P. Morgan. Former Financial Economist. Nearly 25 years of experience in Economics and Finance.
Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, along with several other J.P. Morgan analysts, released a report covering the price predictions of Bitcoin.
In the report, they state that Bitcoin could reach $150,000 in the future – an estimate up from the $146K proposed by the company last year. They explain that this would be possible if Bitcoin’s volatility dropped and institutional investors moved toward Bitcoin over gold.
$450,000 | Michaël van de Poppe, Crypto Trader Analyst
Point of View: Chief Executive Officer & Founder of Eight B.V., a Full-time Trader for Better Options B.V. and Technical Analyst for TradingView.
Michaël van de Poppe believes that Bitcoin will repeat history in 2022 and make a similar bull run as it did the previous year.
“Peak high bull cycle prediction, it still stands. Expecting 2022/2023 to be the top, not this year. Bitcoin $350,000-450,000,” he tweets.
Poppe makes several predictions about other cryptos; for one, Ethereum will reach $17,500.
Things to keep in mind
While these analysts are undoubtedly experts at what they do, at the end of the day, price predictions are just that, predictions. Take them with a grain of salt, and don’t go betting everything on them. These predictions serve as an insight into why Bitcoin could go one way or the other. But unfortunately, they aren’t an insight into the future.
Do adequate research and focus on the fundamentals, rather than just chasing the candles.